Teal signatures

I had intended to spend that extra hour I gained on Sunday visiting all the blogs I've missed the past few days, and make some art. Unfortunately, that didn't happen, and I ended up spending the day working on my blog layout. Miss Kitty's dad, Egmont, spent most of the day trying to help me sort out my over sized photo (image) problem, from when I import my photos from off-site. To make a long story even longer, I now have a few options, but I also have to re-write my code, or have my friend Scott come over and do it for me. Either way, I did blog maintenance, Photoshop maintenance, and no art or visits, although I had a lovely time with Egmont!

Since I have no art to show for yesterday or Saturday, I will show some of the pages from my Teal journal. It is a gift for a friend, and part of a color swap she and I are in. She picked the color and I've been trying to determine what teal really IS since I first heard the word several months ago. Thankfully, she doesn't read my blog, so I can post these here without her knowing. Also thankfully, this is a low key swap, where we don't have a time frame or schedule to keep. It's a one-on-one swap, and we both love the no-pressure attitude we both have toward it.

Originally there were three of us, and the gal who dropped out after the first exchange was the person who chose the size of the pieces. Since then, we have tried to stick to the size, but the last few swaps have brought such things (to me) as a crown and a small quilt. Not a tiny quiltlet, but a QUILT!! This time, I sending her a banner for her studio and this book, which will consist of 80 pages and a cover which is still not any further than it was last week. I will be showing 20 pages per day for four days, because Egmont suggested my posts were photo heavy. So I took his advice (although I still haven't done anything about my blog layout), and will try to cut down on the number of photos I show each day.



Page 1 has an envelope that has a birthday card tucked in. I was recently gifted with this, and found it was the perfect addition to the book. After I scanned the photo, I realized I should add a "stamp," so I did just that, although I didn't bother rescanning due to time constraints.



Page 2 uses book pages, scrapbook paper, and a prompt from a magazine. Page 3 is from a brochure from Liverpool I got to add to my Seven Continent altered book, and ended up sewing some of the pages into journals.


Page 4 has scrapbook paper and a magazine image on some shaving cream paper. Page 5 includes part of a security envelope, and an envelope with a large window that I punched circles in the back to show the handpainted paper. I will add a tag in the pocket.


Page 6 is some hand dyed sticker paper. For page 7, I chose a postcard because my friend likes to send postcards whenever she travels. She'll be able to write a message to herself on the back. The decorations are cut from my neighbor's address labels that she didn't want. I cut the address off and peeled back a small part of the decoration, but left most of it on the release paper. When I added the stickers to the background, I grabbed each, one at a time, then they went on the page right off the release paper. Pretty slick way to line up a bunch of stickers. I saw it on a scrapbook show on PBS years ago, and finally tried it. It works!


Security envelopes punched to 2 inches are all I used on page 8. The background is distress re-inker that I placed a few dots on my craft sheet and spritzed with water. I then took my heat tool and blew the ink around on the craft sheet. Finally, I placed the plain printer paper over the craft sheet and mopped up the mess. For page 9, I used my new MS punch, a magazine image, and a paint chip on plain green scrapbook paper.


For page 10, scrapbook paper, my bird punch, and a magazine word were sewn onto shaving cream paper. Nothing is too outlandish for this journal, as you can see on page 11, which includes a see-through "orange clean" label and an ink cartridge protective strip.



Page 12 includes scrapbook paper and a rubber stamped image. Page 13 has a flower made from various papers and part of a tape measure on shaving cream paper.

I freehand cut a heart from graph paper for page 14. Page 15 includes a map, scrapbook paper, and a magazine image.


Address labels, scrapbook paper, and a magazine border make up page 16. Page 17 is plain except for a sentiment printed on the shiny side of a transparency, then embossed with gold EP.



Page 18 started as a handout from a museum, to which I added part of a crossword puzzle. Page 19 has three (aren't all you stampers proud of me?) stamps, along with a magazine image.


Pages 20 and 21 comprise the center of this set of signatures. You can see how I have sewn only a small way along the bottom and top middles. This is just enough to hold the pages together. Those black lines were made "stamping" a piece of corrugated cardboard with black Staz-on.

I'll show the second half of this set of signatures on Thursday. Hope you will return to see them. Today I'm spending the day with a friend who just moved. I promised I would come see her new home and I am a couple of weeks overdue for that. So Wendy and I will be out and about, having fun with my dear friend Billie, whose husband George (my dear friend) died last year. Billie has really downsized. She went from 4 bedrooms on three levels and 5 baths, down to I think 2 bedrooms and either 1 or 2 baths. Yes, I'll take photos!

After spending all that time talking to Egmont yesterday, the best way I know of to thank him is to feature his other blog. I have featured his blog "The Artist Within Us" back in March, and Miss Kitty's blog last month. Today I'm featuring Four Seasons in a Life, a more personal blog. Egmont's continued battle with his cardiovascular problems are documented here, as are posts that are not art related, but are photographic and beautiful. He is a tea drinker and has been in a tea swap with Pat, one of the Tuesday Tea participants. So Egmont, from the bottom of my heart, I appreciate your efforts yesterday, no matter how futile they were. If you want to see some stunning photographs and share Egmont's personal uphill health challenges, please visit Four Seasons in a Life today. I promise it won't bother Miss Kitty in the least.